It’s no secret that Winter Park Resort is our home mountain. We frequently visit three times a week during the season, and if my two year slows down for a moment, you might run into us on a Wednesday afternoon. Winter Park Resort is one of the last true local mountains in Colorado. Unlike some of the other touristy resorts in Colorado, you wont be spending $40 a day to park your car, or be in bumper to bumper traffic in town. I always seem to share the Challenger lift with somebody from Arkansas, out on their annual ski trip, who tells me they keep waiting for the world to find out about Winter Park. But for the most part, you’ll find yourself skiing with locals.

But here’s the thing, STAYING at Winter Park is a world different than our midweek escapes up to the resort. Every year we plan to have *at least* one family staycation at Winter Park, and it always turns out to be our favorite weekend of the winter. We ski hard, we play hard, and we chill hard. Life slows down when we stay at Winter Park, and we focus on each other and skiing.

Lodging

Winter Park isn’t a big ski town. In fact, it’s home to many locals who live there year round. While there are a few options for lodging in the town of Fraser, when we visit as a family we always stay at either the Zephyr Mountain Lodge or The Vintage. The Zephyr Mountain Lodge is our very favorite, and here’s why: Mountain access and family comfort. Look, sleeping at 9,000ft elevation is no joke. Last time our family shared a hotel room at elevation we slept lightly and poorly. When we have a condo with multiple sleeping areas, we all sleep better through the night (you’ll also want to use a humidifier, drink plenty of water, and stay away from alcohol). The kitchens in the condos at the Zephyr Mountain Lodge are beautiful. We always bring our favorite breakfast staples, popcorn, and chocolate chip cookie ingredients, and set up a little home away from home. Because we have little ones, we also bring some craft and art supplies so we can stay busy and keep our screens off.

The best part about the Zephyr Mountain Lodge? The mountain is RIGHT THERE! Literally! You can ski right out from the slopeside condos! You have mountain access on one side, and village access on the other. There is literally no easier way to do a ski trip. The most challenging part about skiing with toddlers is schlepping all the gear to the base of the resort. When we stay at the Zephyr we can click into our bindings out the back door and ski down to the Gondola. At the end of the day, we can pick up dinner in the village and take it upstairs without going out of our way.

Terrain for the whole family

We have two little kids this season (one is two years old, and the other one just turned six). We are somewhat limited to beginner terrain for our littlest skier this season. Unlike some mountains, Winter Park has several beginner areas across the mountain. When we’re lapping the Discovery Park with our toddler, my older son can break away to the Prospector or Explorer lifts. We can move around the mountain as a family to different beginner zones, like Olympia or High Lonesome for some variety. While Mom or Dad will take turns cruising over the Mary Jane side (Huck loves to ski over there too!), we tend to keep our littlest skier over at the Winter Park base (located right outside the door at the Zephyr!).

Off Mountain Activities

Clearly, we visit Winter Park Resort to ski. That’s our main event. But when we are up for our staycation weekend, we let ourselves live out the full winter adventure experience. After a day of skiing, our kids LOVE to take the cabriolet across the village to the tubing hill. I mean, we all love it! It’s our favorite way to end the day as a family! In the village there are bumper cars on the ice rink, fire pits, and of course a little shopping. And as the sun begins to set, the string lights in the village flicker on, and the magic really comes to life. I wish we brought some ice skates on our last trip so my son and I could have skated on the village ice rink (It’s free! And open to the public!)

When we’re staying up on the mountain, my husband and I love to take advantage of exercising in the most beautiful place on earth. I love to skin up the resort at night (you can purchase an uphill armband here, all proceeds go to Grand County Search and Rescue). Watching the stars come out, and having the snow reflect the light of the moon is absolutely magical. If this is new to you, the resort also offers Intro to Uphill Tour Guide, where they outfit you with all the gear you need! My husband is going to bring his XC skis next time, and go for a morning ski on one of these trails. The valley offers everything from Dog Sledding to Spas to Snow Mobile tours- but you know we love having skis strapped to our feet the very best.

Food

When we stay at the Zephyr Mountain Lodge we tend to bring a cooler of food and cook a few meals. We genuinely enjoy setting up shop and making ourselves at home. My kids love having freshly baked cookies, and I love my husband’s hearty pre-ski breakfasts. That being said, we usually eat out for a few meals too! Doc’s Roadhouse delivers directly to the condo, which is perfect when we’re too tired to cook or put our boots and coats back on and head out. My son always begs to walk down to Pizza Pedal’r in the village. Getting lunch between runs at Lunch Rock has to happen *at least once* for me. And we’ve heard that Pepe Osaka’s is the local’s favorite (we’re trying it next time)!

Explore Fraser Valley

I hate to even say this outloud, but Fraser Valley is one the last best kept secrets near Denver. I don’t want to jinx it! But for whatever reason, Fraser valley hasn’t ridiculously blown up with out of town tourism like most of Colorado’s other ski towns. It still feels local and homey and quirky and quaint. Additionally? It’s *accessible* to locals. Instead of Fendi and Gucci, you can shop locally owned boutiques and restaurants. You won’t have any traffic in town, the trees are always frosted with thick faceted flakes, and you can get a big breakfast burrito for $5 (the Five Buck Huck at Mary Jane Cafe!) And the sunsets and sunrises! There’s something about the valley that makes them the most colorful and warm colors.

Do yourself a favor and book a family staycation at Winter Park Resort! We were hosted by Winter Park this season, and gifted a room at the Zephyr Mountain Lodge, but we’ve been coming up a family staycation here every year since we’ve moved to CO. It’s one of our favorite family trips!

Camping

Luxury Desert Adventure (with a side of Ranch Life)

We’re used to “dirt bagging” it in Moab. We actually drive right by the Sorrel River Ranch every time on our way out of town (sleep deprived and shower deprived), and have been FANTASIZING about booking a trip for our family. “But! Would staying here change everything we love about a trip to Moab?” Turns out: Only in the best ways possible! Let me tell you what we loved about staying at the Sorrel River Ranch.